Online Adaptation

A staff member here adapted an online article for use with parents in the school district as a handout. Currently the entire original article is available online. The staff member's version of the article is 34% of the total size of the original though we don't know the exact percentage of use (we just did a word count). It also cites and gives credit to the author and gives the Web address for the original. The adapted version was also posted on the school district Web site (taken down pending further discussion).
Would our use be covered under fair use?
What recourse does the author have?
Other recommendations?

Thanks. :oops:

October 6, 2004 @ 8:45amkcoyle says:

Have you tried to get permission from the author? I would think that 34% is bordering on "derivative work", but in any case there is an element of courtesy toward the author when you make extensive use of someone else's material. That said, the odds that the author, unless local, will even find out that you used the work is fairly low, if "getting away with it" is a primary goal. ;)